The U.S. began refining its military options for possible strikes in Syria, officials said, and initiated a diplomatic effort to craft an international response to allegations that Syria's government killed over 1,100 civilians with chemical weapons.

美国官员说，该国已开始为可能在叙利亚进行的打击行动优化其军事选择方案，并就叙利亚政府使用化学武器造成逾1,100名平民死亡的指控发起外交努力，协调国际社会对此作出回应。

Officers at the Pentagon on Thursday were updating target lists for possible airstrikes on a range of Syrian government and military installations, officials said, as part of contingency planning should President Barack Obama decide to act after what experts said may be the worst chemical-weapons massacre in more than two decades.

有关官员说，五角大楼官员周四更新了可能对叙利亚展开空袭的政府和军事目标清单。如果美国总统奥巴马(Barack Obama)决定采取行动，那么这就是应急计划的一部分。此前有专家说，叙利亚被指使用化学武器，造成了可能是20多年来最严重的化学武器大屠杀。

As the Pentagon worked on its options, Secretary of State John Kerry held talked by telephone with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius and the foreign-policy chiefs of Turkey, Jordan and the European Union, as well as with United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, officials said.

官员说，在五角大楼研究其军事选择方案之际，美国国务卿克里(John Kerry)与法国外长法比尤斯(Laurent Fabius)和土耳其、约旦、欧盟的外交政策主管以及联合国秘书长潘基文(Ban Ki-moon)通过电话举行了会谈。

The Syrian government denied allegations it gassed its own people, backed by new statements from regime allies Iran and Russia accusing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's international foes of conspiring against him. U.S. officials said they have seen 'strong indications' that chemical weapons were used but that more work was needed to evaluate and collect evidence.

叙利亚政府否认用毒气屠杀国民的指控，并且得到了该政权盟友伊朗和俄罗斯的支持。这两个盟友发表新声明称，叙利亚总统阿萨德(Bashar al-Assad)的国际敌人密谋陷害他。美国官员说，他们看到了表明使用过化学武器的“明显迹象”，但还需要更多工作来评估和收集证据。

The regime gave no indication, however, that it would agree to Mr. Ban's plea to let U.N. inspectors investigate the chemical-weapons allegations, as Syrian forces pressed on with an offensive in the towns around the capital where the attacks were alleged to have occurred.

不过，叙利亚政权没有表示将同意潘基文请求让联合国核查员调查化学武器指控的提议。与此同时，叙利亚武装部队在该国首都附近的城镇正加紧进攻。使用了化学武器的攻击据称就发生在这些城镇。

U.S. officials who described the military options being drawn up at the Pentagon stressed that their purpose wouldn't be to topple the regime, but to punish Mr. Assad if there is conclusive evidence that the government was behind poison-gas attacks on Wednesday. The U.S. believes the Assad regime carried out such attacks, but is still collecting and analyzing evidence, officials said.

那些描述了五角大楼正在制定的军事选择方案的美国官员强调，其目的不是推翻叙利亚政权，而是要严惩阿萨德，当然，这样做的前提是有确凿证据可证明叙利亚政府是周三毒气袭击的幕后凶手。官员说，美国认为这些袭击是阿萨德政权所为，但目前仍在收集并分析证据。

U.S. military options include potential strikes on 'regime targets,' including Syrian government functions crucial to its war effort. In addition, options include strikes on Syrian military 'delivery capabilities and systems' that are either used directly in attacks with poison gas or to facilitate them, from command-and-control facilities to front-line artillery batteries, officials said.

美国的军事选择方案包括可能对“政权目标”实施打击。在其战争努力中发挥关键作用的叙利亚政府职能部门就属于这类目标。美国官员说，选择方案还包括对叙利亚军事交付能力和系统进行打击，如指挥控制设施到前线炮台等。叙利亚政权可直接将该军事交付能力和系统用于毒气战，或协助作战。